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My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

Trixie's Great and Powerful Guide v1.969696Hat Edition

Brief Introduction

Spoiler

Show

My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic is a reboot of the MLP franchise by Powerpuff Girls artist Lauren Faust, currently viewed by (almost) the entire Internet, not only the intended audience. Here is a place where we discuss the joy of friendship.

> My Little Pony? Seriously?

It's a clever show. It has excellent writing, character dynamics, humor, animation, and generally treats kids seriously rather than condescending to them. It has every right to be a 20 minute corporate committee designed infomercial, but it's not.

> Isn't this a show for little girls?

Pixar technically makes shows for little boys, and produce some of the best animation in the world.

> Okay, fine. I'll give it a try. Where do I start?

No Brony could ask for more. I recommend watching the episodes in order. They're all up on Youtube. Unusually, Hasbro seems fine with having the entire series up in public because they've made no move to bring down any of the episodes. Search for "Friendship is Magic Episode 1" and you should find the series pretty easily... Or search for "Sharing is Magic" Google Doc. That is all.

> Okay, I'm going to watch it but this had better live up to the hype!

Whoa, calm down there. The show is light hearted, optimistic fun but it's not for everyone. It's good fun, the community is good fun, and everyone can do with a reminder that friendship is magic but if it doesn't gel for you we'll love and tolerate you anyway. Plus, you might hit the wrong episode. Ask first?

> Iron Hoof/Fan Theories/Shipping/Binding

All in good fun! If it's not your cup of tea, skim it, but this show has triggered a great creative outpouring from the Internet. Pony themed fan-art is abundant and often excellent. See below for some examples.

> Derpy Hooves/Doctor Whoof

Two minor background characters who were adopted as emblems of 4chan. Derpy Hooves is so named due to an animation error in the first episode that had her eyes facing in different directions; 4chan has assigned her the role of Ponyville's mailpony, and her only line so far has been "Muffins". The show's animators are aware of Derpy's popularity and she's shown up a few times recently with her eyes obviously derped. Currently made canon in Feeling Pinkie Keen and in Faust's picture showcased below, Derpy was deemed important enough to appear in storyboards for Season II.

Dr. Whoof is a pony with an hourglass cutie mark; he and his kin save time and space very quietly off camera.

Well, Deadly's here to help you get rid of them... with a vengeance! Create a new bookmark in your browser and copy the code below as the link/url of said bookmark. Name it something helpful, like "Spoilers B GONE!" or whatever. Then whenever you view a thread here on GitP you just hit the bookmark and BAM! no more spoilers.

You won't even see the boxes, just the bare innards in all their gory glory.

It also makes sure that no image is wider than 600px, to avoid stretching pages, and will attempt to "intelligently" remove repeated images except avatars. Neat, huh? Sadly that last part means stuff like pony emotes may get lost but the forum doesn't make it easy for me to single out images in quotes as I'd have liked... that's an open problem, I guess.

Tested in Firefox, Chrome and Opera. Should work in any modern browser, but you never know with these things.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

Doctor Trixie is best doctor.

Nice timing that we get the new thread just before the new episode today. I'm already doing a Daring Do fanart piece, though it has more to do with with something from my childhood than with this episode I'm sure.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

Okay then. I suppose the break is that I don't count friendshipping.
Though kids experimenting would still make me nervous (probably because I have fatherly protective protocols with my daughter.)

Children as young as 5 or 6 have crushes and experiment in all sorts of ways among each other all the time. As long as it is among friends of the same age I think it should be seen as normal play and a healthy sign of curiosity. The problem comes when

a) Adults get involved

b) Force, coercion or bullying is involved. This is always a problem, no matter what the kids are doing.

c) The kids don't understand that what they are doing is natural and okay, but also that it is okay to say no or to talk to an adult about it if something is bothering them

I think the bigger worry is when adults forget or don't want to accept that kids are curious little humans capable of understanding and therefore over-protect them by not explaining things to them, making it hard for the kids to be both curious and safe.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

The irony of being that Medics (or anyone but Soldiers/Engies) don't wear hats. Boo!

I've never played the game (Although why I have it installed I don't know...), but seems strange only certain characters are allowed hats. Doesn't the Sniper class wear a hat?

Where's your new avatar from?

Originally Posted by Deadly

b) Force, coercion or bullying is involved. This is always a problem, no matter what the kids are doing.

c) The kids don't understand that what they are doing is natural and okay, but also that it is okay to say no or to talk to an adult about it if something is bothering them

And this is what I'm talking about with my nervousness. My daughter will hug her friends and school and all that. Perfectly normal. I just worry when some kids get out of hand about it (including my daughter, who can be a bit forceful at times).

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

Originally Posted by DigoDragon

And this is what I'm talking about with my nervousness. My daughter will hug her friends and school and all that. Perfectly normal. I just worry when some kids get out of hand about it (including my daughter, who can be a bit forceful at times).

for the record, when I said experimental kissing, I meant like two kids agreeing to a quick peck to see what it's like.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

Can it be that the new episode doesn't air until half past? Did they change the schedule? The counter I looked at says there are 45 minutes left

Originally Posted by DigoDragon

And this is what I'm talking about with my nervousness. My daughter will hug her friends and school and all that. Perfectly normal. I just worry when some kids get out of hand about it (including my daughter, who can be a bit forceful at times).

That is a legitimate concern. I think the problem is that most adults and society in general are quite bad at talking about such things with kids in a way that is helpful. It's not an easy thing. Edit: And kids can be difficult in general

That is a legitimate concern. I think the problem is that most adults and society in general are quite bad at talking about such things with kids in a way that is helpful.

Yeah. And a good number that'll fly off the handle to blow things out of proportion.
Really, maybe adults should watch Sesame Street or something that has done a really good job of explaining these kinds of things.

I had to teach my daughter a bit about death when my best friend died a few months ago (beause my daughter was always used to him visiting every Saturday and she asked why he doesn't come around here anymore). Kids will get it if you just explain it plainly.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

Ah, I see, they show last week's episode first. Good to know (I didn't get to see it live last week, so I didn't notice the change until now)

Originally Posted by DigoDragon

Yeah. And a good number that'll fly off the handle to blow things out of proportion.
Really, maybe adults should watch Sesame Street or something that has done a really good job of explaining these kinds of things.

I had to teach my daughter a bit about death when my best friend died a few months ago (beause my daughter was always used to him visiting every Saturday and she asked why he doesn't come around here anymore). Kids will get it if you just explain it plainly.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

Originally Posted by erikun

Well my first point is that, well, not all fans are interested in shipping. I don't want to ruin anyone's fun, but is seems that every conversation of such is near-unanimous discussion for it, to the point where people automatically assume that everyone is in support. A few dissenting options should note that there are dissenting options.

And finally, one distinct problem I have with the idea - and with the idea of Rainbow Dash/Fluttershy as well - is the implied concept that childhood friendship necessarily leads into lustful/romantic intentions. The idea that longtime friendships must only be maintained because of some sort of sexual desire on one end (a frequent implication with RD/Flutter) is just a little bit disturbing, not only because it implies that one can't have meaningful experiences or sacrifices for "just friends", but also because it implies that the only reason anyone would share activities with someone else for such extended lengths of time is the motivation of sex.

I'd like to add something to that. I have nothing about shipping - I do have some favourite pairs in fact, I don't mind if people discuss it.

But it seems to me some pairings are... Just trophy wishful thinking. Especially pairings that tend to contain... 'male' substitutes of sorts. Characters with which males can identify with. Where 'female' side has nothing to say, like women were treated 50 years ago. I don't know if it is just my feeling, but these two, if pushed too hard, tend to be the squickest parts of the fandom to me.

Case in point #1 - Spike/Rarity. Leaving on side paedophilia/interspecies issues, Rarity is very strong, successful artist that had been continuously portrayed as someone hungry for success, social status, and wealth. Her interests - Hoity, Blueblood, Fancypantsy, are all famous, rich, hugely desirable, coming with tons of social points and contacts. What Spike has to offer her in this regard? Nothing. Not only from her perspective it's at best just cute crush of young brother of your friend, at worst, Spike scarred her for like with that greed outburst. It wouldn't puzzle me if it was just quiet, background ship, but its followers tend to grasp on any straw, no matter how thin, and produce things that often cause me to raise brow in disbelief. The only reason for that I can see is that he is just easiest to identify with for male fans, many of which dream of someone like Rarity.

Note the above only applies to loud, repeater shippers, not casual fans.

All I can say, I was glad when I read tweet by comic writers being puzzled about the whole shipping issue and stating everything with Spike was just put there as a joke, though as I said before that bonus comic alone makes Spike so unsympathetic it's hard to not hate him outright :|

Case #2 - Rainbow/Flutter. I have nothing about Rainbow shipping in particular, except for one thing - other Mane 6 members are shown as strong characters fully capable of saying 'no' when Rainbow forgets herself and pushes too hard (which she does once per ep). Everyone except Fluttershy, of course.

I don't know, to me this pairing is so horribly mismatched I don't see it working. At all. Rainbow Dash shows zero understanding or tolerance for Fluttershy issues - to the point that even Pinkie Pie, pony with worst social barrier knowledge of all had to tell her multiple times "stop, that is seriously not cool". In a sense, Dash just treats FS like she would treat herself, but I can only see it ending in FS being broken or traumatized. Prank Fluttershy when even Pinkie says it would give her heart attack? No problem. Duel with live, dangerous weapons? Sure. Fluttershy is sick? Kick her out of bed. She can't deal with social pressure? Don't talk, just kick her for not putting in Rainbow Dash levels of effort. Someone tries to enslave village? Don't go for help yourself despite bragging how fast you are, kick Fluttershy instead, risk of attracting vicious ire and punishment be damned. This pairing is so one sided it again reminds me of trophy girl that must belong to most masculine (at least on surface) Mane 6 girl.

I don't know, maybe I go about it all wrong, but all my efforts of understanding why both of these attract so loud minority unlike all other ships so far boiled out to this. Two one sided pairings, the dominant side being easy to identify with for Bronies, the submissive wishes being ignored even when that character is by far the stronger, more mature, and decisive one.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

Originally Posted by Trixie

So, no more votes?

Ok, gonna give it 10 more minutes.

...

No. It's not.

Case in point - had F&F really didn't care, they wouldn't make a machine that makes staunchly conservative, criticizing grandma go into shock after one tasting. They would just settle for 'good enough' seeing quality costed them volume, and go for Coca Cola business model. F&F only started to water down final product in desperation after they were tricked into complete change of agreed deal. They clearly understood what they were doing, they had just no other options left.

You know, how can anyone say they were con men when a good swindler just had to dispense all the good cider they made at first to quieten criticism? Especially seeing that despite their names machine worked exactly as advertised? They sucked as con ponies, their machine building skills were top notch... To me, it says wandering inventor, not con artist. Inventor that wasn't recognized in any way.

And the final nail to the coffin of that episode - was extremely rude, obnoxious letter at the end, insulting both Celestia to which it was sent and her friends that worked their sides off to save Apples. AJ doesn't acknowledge new ideas can be good, she just says "lernud nufin" and still considers her ways to be the best and only. There isn't even a glimmer of understanding what just happened, both on sociological and technological front. She doesn't even thank RD for help, help that came despite how AJ treated RD in the beginning of episode.

From protagonists perspective, all the cheating they did was okay, and the machine was evil like its owners. I fail to see where there is even a iota of praise for it outside of granny's reaction. AJ stance goes even further than most extreme luddists, there is no saving it. At all.

I am well aware of your stance on the episode from previous discussions. As interesting as it is to find someone who empathises with the con-ponies above the protagonists, I've really little to say on the subject. Yours is a heavily entrenched opinion and we've already had this discussion before.

Let me know if you caught my reply, Forum Explorer, I can repost if you missed it.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

Originally Posted by erikun

Now, I'm not taking this out on your directly. It's more of something that I've wanted to mention for awhile. I'm not even against the concept of "shipping", although I'd prefer it with some sort of meaningful engagement or progression of character that would imply it. I'm just point out that A LOT of the excuses given for such topics are, to be frank, quite shallow. And a bit depressing, both with significant relationships being built on so little, and with significant relationships being implied to only be about so little.

I agree about the shallowness of a lot of shipping. Heck, that's a problem with romance fiction in general, I think, and why I try to avoid romances. That being said, though, I think childhood romances are the most plausible of an implausible lot (not counting those people who manage to make "love at first sight", "childhood friends", and everything in between actually work, since they're few and far between). As you so aptly put it, romance ought to have a strong, meaningful relationship, rather than being about appearance, sex, money, or what-have-you. The childhood friend already has a strong, meaningful relationship, so romance simply builds on that. It's one of the few romantic tropes I can tolerate. (The other one being "they meet in the first novel and over the course of some time romantic feelings develop". Tamora Pierce is pretty good at that with her Tortall novels. Not quite so with her Circle series, but you can't win 'em all.

That being said, though, I also agree that shipping them during their preteen years isn't kosher. Shipping should be kept age-appropriate, IMHO.

Originally Posted by Pendulous

I vote for Dreams of Frosting or whatever, because it's the only one that sounds relevant.

Wait, you think relevance is the point of the thread titles?

Have I mentioned how much I love Shadyvox (he says while not being fond of Yu-gi-oh GX Abridged)? Have I also mentioned how kind of annoying Button's voice is?

Yeah, Button's voice was and is grating to me.

Originally Posted by Forum Explorer

Actually that reminds me of something,

A lot of people say that Cider Squeezy 6000 episode was anti-technology in message. And I can kinda see their point. Though I'd say that it more revealed a flaw in Applejack, that of her being a traditionalist who is more likely to reject something out of hoof or simply be uncomfortable around new technologies. Even in the new season we've seen signs of that, as Applejack has been treating Twilight more as a subject does a Princess then as a close friend. She's also the one who brings up the idea that Princesses should be kept safe, despite them being the most capable of ponies present.

Anyways the original question before I got distracted is how would you change the episode to be less anti-technology? The only way I can think of is to make it so that the Apples were betting their farm against the machine, rather then against nothing at all.

Or, y'know, Applejack was just protesting these city clickers who carelessly broke their fence and is cutting in on their best source of income? The episode may have been antitechnology, but I don't think Applejack was. She just disliked these people, both for their lack of courtesy and the competition for the money she needs to keep her family alive.

Of course, had either side been even a teensy bit smarter, they would have gone into partnership and split the profits. But apparently sound business practices aren't appropriate to teach children.

Originally Posted by Trixie

No. It's not.

Case in point - had F&F really didn't care, they wouldn't make a machine that makes staunchly conservative, criticizing grandma go into shock after one tasting. They would just settle for 'good enough' seeing quality costed them volume, and go for Coca Cola business model. F&F only started to water down final product in desperation after they were tricked into complete change of agreed deal. They clearly understood what they were doing, they had just no other options left.

You know, how can anyone say they were con men when a good swindler just had to dispense all the good cider they made at first to quieten criticism? Especially seeing that despite their names machine worked exactly as advertised? They sucked as con ponies, their machine building skills were top notch... To me, it says wandering inventor, not con artist. Inventor that wasn't recognized in any way.

And the final nail to the coffin of that episode - was extremely rude, obnoxious letter at the end, insulting both Celestia to which it was sent and her friends that worked their sides off to save Apples. AJ doesn't acknowledge new ideas can be good, she just says "lernud nufin" and still considers her ways to be the best and only. There isn't even a glimmer of understanding what just happened, both on sociological and technological front. She doesn't even thank RD for help, help that came despite how AJ treated RD in the beginning of episode.

From protagonists perspective, all the cheating they did was okay, and the machine was evil like its owners. I fail to see where there is even a iota of praise for it outside of granny's reaction. AJ stance goes even further than most extreme luddists, there is no saving it. At all.

What cheating? Flim and Flam agreed to it, for goodness' sake! All that proves is that when it came to that episode, the Idiot Ball was the size of a supernova. Everyone was an idiot, except Celestia and Luna, because they had the sense to stay well clear of the whole thing. And maybe also Fluttershy, because she wanted to stay in bed and wake up at a sensible hour, and may have missed half the episode if Rainbow Dash had let her.

Furthermore, Flim and Flam probably would have won regardless of the help of the friends, had they not panicked. They had a very significant lead, and their cider was at least as good. Their problem was that they were idiots. Idiots good at composing song lyrics and inventing machines, but idiots nonetheless.

Though I agree that the letter was somewhat rude. Then again, Applejack may have been drunk when she wrote it. Cut her a little slack for not being at her most sensible when drunk.

I run the Five Gems campaign, where ponies, griffons, and changlings search for five mystical gems to unlock the vault to the mighty Crown of the Griffon King.
IC thread
OOC thread

If you like DC, Marvel, and Worm, check out Invincible, wherein Emma Barnes triggers with the Kryptonian package.
If you enjoy Self-Inserts, Worm, and/or Mistborn, check out Preservation.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

I've never played the game (Although why I have it installed I don't know...), but seems strange only certain characters are allowed hats. Doesn't the Sniper class wear a hat?

Oh, you can wear optional hats, but by default, Medics have no hat at all:

Spoiler

Show

And the Sniper and Scout have infamous hatless hats:

Thus, the joke is, in a game commonly called 'hat simulator' only Soldier really is designed and is seen in fan art wearing a hat at all times. In fact, his eyes are such nightmare fuel in the game even rare options to uncover them are rarely exercised and they are covered at almost all times. Hell, even multi-class hats that don't cover face of other classes tend to do that for soldier.

Re: My Little Pony LXXIV: Hats Are Technology!

S4 Ep4

Spoiler

Show

Poor Dash, just fangirling all over the place. I could see our fav staff making little jabs about that on Twitter.
However, my favorite part has to be watching Dash and Twi geek argue at each other. I was totally in gigge-fits with that.

I like Soras' comment. It was much like this thread animated.

Kinda odd that all these characters from what should be a fictional series are real. Did any of them think to sue for royalties? Ah well. It might have been a bit interesting if they were all just actors having writer's block.